oc recurrence

My mother was diagnosed with stage 3c of ovc jan 07 underwent complete hysterectomy and removal of omentum in mar 07. She had 6 chemos of taxol and crboplatin endin may 07. Pet scan and ca 125 all done in aug 07 gave her the all clear. But now she has been into hosp and the usound showed build up of fluid in stomach (similar fluid was there in jan 07 too) which was removed and the scan has revealed a tumor on the lining of the intestine. She will probably have to undergo chemo again! The recurrence has happend just over 6 mnths of the last therapy. really worried, has anyone faced a similar situation? Is chemo the only answer since we all know what it does to the body?

[SimplyStar]

the recurrance rate for stage three is very high. My daughters recurred 2 1/2 months following her first line of chemo, CA125 had dropped to 7, raised to 65 and then after a failed trial went up to 265, now is dropping again after 8 infusions of Doxil. Her recurrance was 3 small lesions on the abdominal lining.  yes most stage three  have to have repeated chemos, if the right one is found , a remission is possible. Sorry to hear about your Mothers recurrance, this is a dreadful disease and too many here are suffering the results. Chemo is about the only thing offered right now.

[Helmar]

Hello...unfortunately with this disease recurrence is more probable than not, so many of us go through lots of chemos to try and find one that will give us some 'time out' from both the disease, and the treatments. I've been doing chemos of all sorts for well over 3 years now, and although they are probably knocking my body around, I feel well and have a good quality of life. If one doesn't do chemo, and keep this wretched disease under control, then I don't fancy the alternative much. Maybe a second surgery could be an option for your Mum? Don't get too upset about the possibility of further chemo for your Mum though... if she's a healthy person, she should be able to manage it o.k...
Wishing you and your Mum all the best...hugs...Helen...

[deb2970]

Thanks. Doc says surgery not an option.They are going to start cisplatin and caelyx from tom

[Jan214]

I am sorry your mom has to go through this again, but like the ladies said, chemo is the only way to keep it under check.  I KNOW how much you all hate the idea of it, especially your mom.  I recurred 4 mths after finishing the carbo/taxol.  What surprised (& upset) me the most were the different side effects I experienced with the second line.  I was used to the side effects of the carbo/taxol, but new ones popped up and they scared the heck out of me.  Had I not come on here and found out from some others that they were having the same side effects I would have thought I was nuts.  So, find out what you can about those drugs your mom is on so you can keep an eye out for any of the mentioned affects.  That way you will know if something is the drug or not and it almost always is the chemo drugs.  Oh, I am not on those drugs so I can't help you there, but there are several who are on that protocol so they can tell you.
Good luck and your family will be in my prayers.
Jan